News Briefs

January 13, 2016 | Crowd funding platform OurCrowd has released their annual report in partnership with Xconomy, in which they recored $5 billion invested into Israeli technology in 2015. Speaking on the particular success of OurCrowd, CEO Jon Medved said, “Since our launch in 2013, we have raised $200 million for our 91 portfolio startups, making us one of the largest investors in the Israeli tech ecosystem and one of the largest equity crowdfunding platforms globally. We are driving the democratization of venture capital, opening the door to tens of thousands of accredited investors who want to invest in the next generation of tech leaders.”

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January 13, 2015 | Israeli startup MySizeID has raised 10 million shekels (approximately $2.5 million) through a convertible loan, with the hopes of meeting the threshold conditions for listing on the American or British exchanges. Founded by Ronen Luzon, MySizeID has developed an app for measuring people’s clothing size to insure that regardless of the manufacturer’s size chart, they will always get the right fit. MySizeID is traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange with a market cap of NIS 288 million ($73 million), and it has been preparing for its Nasdaq listing for about a year. Because of the delay, the company recently announced its intention of listing on the AIM in London.

 

 

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January 12, 2015 | A therapy invented at the Weizmann Institute of Science and clinically developed in collaboration with Steba Biotech (Luxembourg) has been approved by Cofepris, Mexico’s health authority, for the focal treatment of early-stage prostate cancer. Developed by Prof. Yoram Salomon and Prof. Avigdor Scherz, TOOKAD® Soluble, combines an intravenous infusion immediately followed by near-infrared laser illumination through thin optic fibers that are inserted into the cancer prostatic tissue, under ultrasound control. The drug stays in the patient’s blood circulation until it totally clears 3-4 hours later, and it shows no toxicity. Confined illumination of the diseased tissue activates the circulating drug locally, resulting in the extensive generation of short-lived toxic molecules: oxygen and nitric oxide radicals. These highly reactive molecules initiate rapid occlusion and destruction of the tumor blood vessels, followed by necrotic death of the entire tumor while sparing nearby structures and their functions.

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January 12, 2016 | Israeli food flavoring giant Frutarom has completed its 29th acquisition in five years, with its purchase of US-based Grow Company Inc. for $20 million. Founded in 1977 in New Jersey, Grow has developed unique production methods for producing natural ingredients for dietary supplements, remedies, cosmetics and flavors. Frutarom also announced that it completed its purchase (announced in 2015) of 75% of the share capital of Polish company AMCO Sp. z o.o., which specializes in unique savory flavors. Frutarom President and CEO Ori Yehudai said, “We have an excellent pipeline of future acquisitions” and that “joining together the worlds of natural flavors and health will contribute towards achieving the goals we recently set out: $2 billion in sales by 2020 along with an EBITDA margin of over 22% in our core activities.”

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January 12, 2015 | Israeli ultrasound developer Insightec has raised $22 million in Series D round of fundraising from current investors including Elbit Medical Technologies, York Capital, GE Healthcare, Medtech Advisors and a an unnamed Chinese investor. Founded in 1999 by Dr. Kobi Vortman, Insightec has developed Magnetic Resonance guided Focused Ultrasound (MRgFUS), a non-invasive therapy used in neurosurgery, oncology and gynecology. The Haifa-base company has also appointed Dr. Maurice R. Ferré as CEO. He succeeds Vortman, who will hold a seat on the board and continue to drive strategy, as well as the product roadmap.

 

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January 12, 2016 | Israeli software giant NICE Systems has acquired analytics company Nexidia for $135 million. Founded in 2000 by Mark Clements and Peter Cardillo, Nexidia offers a platform that makes unstructured audio and video content searchable. Founded in 1986 and now run by CEO Barak Eilam, NICE Systems specializes in telephone voice recording, data security, and surveillance, as well as systems that analyze this recorded data. Headquartered in Ra’anana, NICE trades on the Nasdaq with a market capitalization of $3.3 billion.

 

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January 12, 2015 | Fourteen Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers were awarded prestigious European Research Council grants by the European Union in 2015 with a total funding from the awards exceeding €23,000,000. The Hebrew University was awarded the most ERC grants of any Israeli academic research institution, including four women: Prof. Tamar Ziegler from The Hebrew University’s Einstein Institute of Mathematics; Prof. Elisheva Baumgarten from the Dept. of History of the Jewish People and Contemporary Jewry; Prof. Nathalie Balaban from The Racah Institute of Physics; and Prof. Edit Tshuva from the Institute of Chemistry.

 

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January 12, 2016 | Israeli medical device company CartiHeal has raised $15 million in a round of financing led by Johnson & Johnson Innovation. Existing investors Elron Electronic Industries, Accelmed, Access Medical Ventures and Peregrine Ventures, also participated. The new funds will be used to scale-up manufacturing  of its primary product, the Agili-C implant, which has “demonstrated outstanding ability to reproducibly regenerate hyaline cartilage,” according to Founder & CEO Nir Altschuler. Especially pertinent to osteoarthritis, Agili-C enables biological resurfacing of cartilage and its underlying subchondral bone through a tissue regeneration process. The implant has been successfully implanted in nearly 200 patients throughout Europe, and after obtaining CE approval, the company is preparing for initial European commercialization in 2017.

 

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January 11, 2016 | Today Israeli research firm IVC and law firm Meitar released their Israeli High-Tech Exits Report 2015, in which they recorded a total of $9.02 billion in exits – up 16 percent from 2014. VC-backed exits reached $4.98B, the highest in 10 years, and M&A deals reached $7.2 billion, also the highest in 10 years. The report also noted that M&A deals have increased in size: Deals above $50 million make up 40% of deals and 90% of proceeds. IPO activity slowed down in 2015, with $609 million raised in foreign markets, yet experts have put this down to the relative ease of raising capital in the private markets.

 

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January 11, 2016 | Israeli medical device company EarlySense will provide an IoT-connected sleep sensor for iFit that will be integrated with iFit mattresses and mattress covers. By monitoring sleep quality and vital signs such as heart rate and respiratory rate, users can track themselves at night and receive personalized tips to improve sleep and overall wellness. Co-Founded by CEO Avner Halperin in 2004, EarlySense has developed a clipboard-sized sensor that can be embedded in any mattress to monitor sleep, vital signs and motion, and initially piloted in hospitals. The company has since raised over $50 million, including investment from Samsung Ventures and Pitango Venture Capital.

 

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January 11, 2016 | The NASDAQ and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) are partnering to prepare Israeli companies before going public. Their joint services will include providing pre-exit services such as strategic counseling and mentoring, exclusive networking, a secondary market for liquidity events and debt financing services. The partnership will help both exchanges reach younger companies that have been turning to the private market to raise capital.

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January 11, 2016 | Pi-Cardia, a portfolio company in Israeli fund Clal Biotechnologies Industries, has sold a 25% equity share to an unnamed major medical instrument company in exchange for $10 million. Pi-Cardia is developing a novel low profile catheter for the treatment of aortic stenosis (the narrowing of the heart valve). The company’s technology, which in undergoing clinical trials, creates fractures in valve calcifications, without injuring the surrounding soft tissue. This treatment, which only takes several seconds, is intended to increase the effectiveness and lifespan of the valve.

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January 10, 2015 | On-demand streaming giant Netflix announced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas that its services are now available in Israel as well as 129 other countries. “While you have been listening to me talk, the Netflix service has gone live in nearly every country in the world except China,” Netflix Co-Founder and CEO Reed Hastings announced during his keynote speech. Most of the new markets will have access to platforms in English, though Netflix did add Korean and Arabic services. Its platform in Israel currently offers settings in English and Arabic, but not Hebrew. Crimea, North Korea, and Syria were not granted access to the service due to American restrictions.

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January 10, 2016 | In his keynote address opening the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich announced that Intel is working with Israel’s Replay Technologies to enable 3D replay of sporting events. Using 25 to 32 super high-definition cameras in a given venue, Replay’s proprietary “freeD” technology uses voxels (3D volumetric pixels) to capture almost every angle of every play. Founded in 2012 by former Elbit engineers Oren Haimovitch-Yogev and Aviv Shapira, and animation technology developer Matteo Shapira, Replay Technology made its debut at the 2012 London Olympics and has since covered event for the NBA, NFL, PGA, MLB, NCAA and U.S. Open. So far, the company has received funding from NBA Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, as well as a $9 million investment from Guggenheim Partners.

 

 

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January 10, 2016 | Phinergy, an Israeli company developing electric car batteries, has raised $50 million in an investment round led by its strategic partner Alcoa, according to Calcalist. One of the largest aluminum producers in the world, Alcoa is investing $10 million in Phinergy following a cooperation agreement signed two years ago to develop aluminum-air car batteries. Since then, the companies have demoed their technology on a motorized boat on Lake Neuchâtel, Switzerland, where the aluminum-air battery gave the boat an extra 25 hours at sea. Founded in 2008 by CEO Aviv Tzidon, Phinergy is thought to have a valuation of $280 million.

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